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Kansas Green Guide Your Bi-Weekly Guide to Sustainable Living

How to Winterize Your Home October 12, 2012

Winterizing your home is an inexpensive way to save money on your heating bill. It is also important because

reduced consumption of natural gas, propane and electricity translates into environmental benefits and natura

resource conservation. Every cubic foot of gas or kilowatt hour of electricity saved reduces the generation of

air and water pollutants and conserves finite energy resources for future generations. It makes good financial

sense to winterize your home and by easing your heaters workload, you will help the environment. Here are

some tips for winterizing your home:

1. Change Furnace Filters It is easy to forget, but it is important to replace or clean yourfurnace filters once a month during the heating season. Dirty filters restrict airflow and

increase energy demand. Set monthly reminders on your calendar to help you remember. If

you want to go above and beyond, consider purchasing a permanent filter which will reduce

waste and hassle. Disposable fiberglass filters only trap up to 40 percent of debris while permanent

electrostatic filters trap around 88 percent.

2. Winterize Your A/C and Water Lines This one is fairly simple. Drain air conditioner pipes and make sureyou dont have excess water pooled in equipment. If your A/C has a water shut off valve, turn that off too.

Make sure you drain your hoses and store them away for the winter as well as turn off exterior water

spigots. Lastly, remove window A/C units and store them to prevent drafts.

3. Install Storm Doors and Windows Installing a storm door can increase energy efficiency by 45 percent bysealing drafts and reducing air flow. Storm doors also offer greater flexibility for

letting light and ventilation enter your home. Storm windows can also make a huge

difference in the winter. Storm windows add an insulation barrier and reduce storm

noise.

4. Avoid Drafts According to the US Department of Energy, drafts can waste 5 to 30 percent of your energyuse. Start simple with a draft snake, which you can easily make yourself. Just place a rolled up bath towel

under a drafty door or make a draft snake with fabric filled with sand.

5. Pay Attention to Your Thermostat It is easy to forget to turn down the heat when you leave, but doing sois one of the surest ways to save money. Most households shell out 50 to 70 percent of their energy

budgets on heating and cooling, so why pay for what no one is using? Every degree you lower the

thermostat, youll save between 1 and 3 percent on your heating bill. Make it easier with a programmable

thermostat the average family will save $180 a year with one.

6. Put on a Sweater Sounds simple right? Remember what you just read about each degree on thethermostat costing you money? It may be winter outside, but it shouldnt feel like summer inside.

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Dressing in a light long-sleeved sweater is roughly worth about 2 degrees in added warmth and a heavy

sweater is adds about 4 degrees.

7. Run Fans in Reverse Most people think of fans only when they want to be cool but manyceiling units come with a switch that reverses the direction of the blade. Counterclockwise

rotation produces cooling breezes while switching to clockwise makes it warmer. Hot air rises,

and the hot air pooled at the ceiling is circulated back into the living area. This could cut your heating

costs by as much as 10 percent!8. Turn Down Your Water Heater While many conventional water heaters are set to 140 degrees by

installers, most households dont need water that hot and end up paying for it. Lowering

the temperature to 120 degrees would reduce your water heating costs by 6 to 10

percent.

9. Give Your Heating System a Tune-Up Just like cars, heating equipment need periodictune-ups in order to run their best. Keeping your furnace clean, lubricated and properly

adjusted will reduce energy use and save up to 5 percent of your heating costs. Many utilities offer free

annual checkups by qualified technicians, but you have to call early as they get backed up once heating

season starts. Some furnace dealers may also offer free or discounted inspections just be prepared for a

sales pitch.

10.Put Up Some Plastic For just a few dollars you can pick up a window insulation kit at your local hardwareor discount store. Properly installed plastic is essentially invisible, so dont worry about

aesthetics. Adding a buffer against drafts and extra still air space can give a nice boost

to your homes ability to hold heat.

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